Zutto Soba Ni
by SilverCyanide
Summary: [Always by your Side] Eiji's been acting weird lately, and it's not just your normal everyday stuff. [Cancer fic, NOT leukemia, eventual GP.][Ch. 1 through 4 edited for technical stuff, Ch. 5 posted.]
1. Seeing or not

Title: Zutto Soba Ni (which I believe translates to "Always by your side".)

Summary: Eiji's been acting weird lately, and it's not just your normal everyday stuff.

Words: **796 (snap it's short! But it feels longer...)**

A/N: I will tell you right now that this is a cancer fic, so if you hate those press the back button now. However, I will also tell you that this is NOT a leukemia fic. There are far too many out there for my liking, and I thought I might bring some other peoples attention to other problems. So far, I'm pretty sure this is the only fic I've seen with this problem. I will be writing based on research and based on the past experiences of one of my best friends Jo and whatever last years Science/Social Studies teacher told us, because she had the same thing. That is all.

**May 7th, 2007: Re-written because the original chapter sucked. Only writing changes, content is the same.**

* * *

Oishi Syuchiroh had to try and hide the extreme anxiety that plagued his face. 

For the past two weeks or so his doubles partner, Kikumaru Eiji, had been far from just having "off days."

The normally hyper red-head had been having severe headaches off and on, as well as seeming extremely tired.

So tired, that Oishi hadn't been glomped when his partner had first spotted him. In fact, he hadn't even known Eiji was behind him as there was an extreme lack of noise from the acrobat.

It wasn't until he had turned around, and his green eyes met with distant, far-off, _abnormal_ blue ones, that he had noticed the other boy.

"Eiji," Oishi said voice soft and worry still written all over his face, "Are you all right? Perhaps you should go home and rest."

"Nya, I'm fine Oishi. Just a little bit tired," Eiji replied, putting a smile on that was obviously forced.

Oishi sighed. "Just be careful, okay? If you're not feeling well you really should go home."

Eiji was about to respond when Fuji suddenly popped up next to him.

"Saa, Eiji we best be getting to class, it starts in ten minutes," and with that Fuji led Eiji away, however not before glancing at Oishi and giving him the "he'll-be-fine-I-promise" look. And Oishi could only hope he was right.

* * *

To Oishi's relief, Eiji's headache was much less severe by second period and nearly gone by lunch. Along with the absence of a headache he also gained some of his usual energy back, although he still seemed tired. Things actually seemed to be going rather well, until afternoon practice. 

"Today we'll be doing an eye-training drill," Inui said. "Balls will shoot out of that machine in different directions at the same time very quickly and you will need to tell me how many you saw. You'll be doing this as a group activity." Inui said looking like he was about to turn on the machine. "Oh, and one more thing; anybody who saw less than the actual number of balls shot has to drink _this_," he said, holding up a pitcher of…actually it was reddish-greenish-purple, I guess you could say. With that the machine was set off and three balls were fired out of it.

"Kaidoh?"

"Ffssh, 3"

"Momoshiro?

"3"

"Echizen?"

"5"

"Oishi?"

"4"

"Kawamura?"

"3"

" Fuji?"

"Saa, 5"

"Tezuka?"

"5"

"Kikumaru?"

There was no response.

"Kikumaru?" Inui asked again. Eiji muttered something inaudible. "Sorry, didn't catch that."

"2" Eiji said in barely more than a whisper.

"2, did you say? I'm sorry the corre-" Inui looked up, thinking he must have misheard something. After all, Eiji did have the best eye sight of all of them."2?" Eiji nodded. "I see…well we'll just move on then," Inui said, ignoring the shocked looks on his teammates faces, half from Eiji only seeing two balls, half from the fact that Inui didn't make the normally hyper-active third-year drink his "juice".

With that the machine started up again, firing four different balls.

"Kaidoh?"

"Ffsssh, 5"

"Momoshiro?"

"4"

"Echizen?"

"6"

"Oishi?"

"5"

"Kawamura?"

"4"

" Fuji?"

"7"

"Tezuka?"

"6"

"Kikumaru?" No answer. "Kikumaru?" He looked over again to see Eiji sitting there looking helpless.

"3" he said in a voice that quavered and a face that let everybody know that he could very well brake down and cry right there.

Inui blinked a few times, before writing something down that wasn't legible, handing it to Eiji, and whispering in the other boy's ear to go see Ryuuzaki-sensei. With that practice continued, nearly everybody trying to spot the balls so as not to have to drink the "juice". However, two regulars ended up being victims of Inui's juice that day, and they were none other than Oishi and Fuji.

Inui's "juices" were the least of Oishi and Fuji's problems that day. No, their worries were strictly on Eiji. After practice both approached a very confused and distressed looking Eiji.

"Eiji," Oishi said, not even trying to hide the immense worry he was feeling, "What happened? Are you feeling all right? Perhaps you should stay home tomorrow," Oishi said, bombarding his already startled partner with more questions than he could answer.

"Nya, Oishi, I'm fine," Eiji said, forced smile plastered on his face, trying to re-assure his double partner.

"Eiji, what's wrong?" was Fuji's question, and from the fact that his blue eyes were almost completely visible it was difficult to try and stay composed.

"I-I was just h-having an off d-day," he stuttered quietly, looking at his feet. "I-I'll b-be fine tomorrow, I promise, nya," he said, both trying to re-assure himself and end the conversation.

The other boys nodded, and though both still wanted to talk they dropped the topic and walked home in silence.

* * *

AH!!! I'm sorry if it stunk/was really short. To be honest, I think this is the longest chapter of a story I've ever written. Anyways, no matter if you loved/hated/didn't care, please send me a review. Please? -does puppy eyes- **Definitely not longest. XP  
**

P.S. If you've been looking at my fics I've been writing a lot of random stuff lately. Just kinda experimenting and writing what comes to mind. Possibly starting on a oneshot KiriSomebody fic (I'm not telling who. MWHAHAHAHA!)** As of edit: posted under the title 'Hidden Love'. Check it out, ne:)  
**


	2. Lost the Feeling

Disclaimer: If I owned the characters then Akaya would have been the prince of tennis and he would have been together with Yukimura a LONG time ago.  
Words: 1151 (short...sorry..) **1154 after edit.**  
Title: Zutto Soba Ni (which I believe translates to "Always by your Side")  
Warning: Eventual Golden Pair  
A/N: I'll start (again) by saying this is a cancer fic. I'll also say that it's not a leukemia fic. Old Fiat wondered why I gave Eiji cancer and I have to say that it was origionally going to do Marui (I had a series of dreams that involved him dying from cancer) but I don't think I'd be able to do this to Marui. Another reason is because I find that I can easily connect with Eiji and so can my BFF Joanna. Also, seifumegetsu wondered why I said "many leukemia fics." It's more that it seems that all of the cancer fics for PoT are leukemia. -nods- Oh, and I would like to take this time to say that anything about tennis will probably be REALLY off because, well, I'm a swimmer and just about everything I know about tennis has come from PoT. XP  
**For Joanna, you're the best friend anybody could ever have!**

** Edited on May 15th, 2007. Just re-writes, not content change.  
**

* * *

As the days dragged by Oishi and Fuji couldn't help but be concerned for their friend.

The day following the tennis ball incident they were playing practice matches and Eiji was put in singles against Kaidoh. For what reason, who knows, but it was Ryuuzaki-sensei and she liked to mix things up.

In the middle of the match Kaidoh had just hit another Snake, a shot that Eiji could easily return due to lots of practice, but just as the ball was about to touch the racket it dropped out of Eiji's hand. His eyes became large moving first from his hand, then to the racket, and then back to his hand.

"Ffssh, senpai is something wrong?" Kaidoh said hoping to get back to the game. Typical Kaidoh, always thinking of tennis (and animals. But that's a different story).

Shaking the shocked look off of his face Eiji replied with as much cheer as he could muster, "Nya, I'm fine. Serve," before picking up his racket and positioning himself on the court.

Not too long after the serve Kaidoh hit a cross shot. Not very tough to get, especially for Eiji, but as he went to jump for it his foot stayed rooted to the ground. In fact, he fell flat on his face. At this a very worried Oishi who had been watching from the side (his match between Kawamura had ended minutes before) rushed over to his partner. Extreme concern filled his voice as he questioned Eiji.

"Are you okay? What happened? Seriously, Eiji, if you're not feeling well then you should go home," were just a few of the questions and comments Oishi managed to get in before Eiji cut him off.

"I'm fine, Oishi. I told you already."

"Please, don't lie to me, Eiji," came Oishi's response sounding both serious and worried. He checked Eiji over while waiting for a response and noticed that, strangely, there were no marks on his palms but that the _backs_ of his arms were bleeding quite badly – almost as if he hadn't tried to break his fall. Then again, thinking back to the minute before he realized that he _hadn't_tried to break his fall. He was just about to ask Eiji why when he got his reply.

"Nya, it just didn't move – my foot. Then earlier my hand just kinda…lost feeling I guess. I dunno. It was tingly."

During the time he was talking Oishi had helped him move over to a bench to clean and bandage his harms, signaling to Kaidoh that the match between him and Eiji was over. Oishi looked up, seemingly about to say something, but the sound of Ryuuzaki-sensei's voice interrupted him.

"Kikumaru," she called, "Over here." They got up, Oishi planning on following when she called again, "Only Kikumaru, Oishi." Eiji gave his partner a nervous glance before heading over to see their coach.

"Kikumaru, what happened today?" Ryuuzaki-sensei asked, looking…worried? Maybe, you couldn't really tell with her.

Eyes focused firmly on the ground Eiji replied, "I don't really know, sensei. Everything was fine one second and the next my hand went numb," he answered, being completely honest for once.

She sighed as she asked, "All right. What happened yesterday, then?" seeing as unlike yesterday he was actually answering her today instead of just apologizing.

He spoke, still looking down, but she could hear the quaver in his voice as he answered her, "I…don't know, sensei. Everything was just sorta blurry. No, that's not it. It was just…I don't know. I went to look and they weren't there. I didn't-" here he stopped, wondering whether he should tell her or not and decided to continue, "I didn't actually see any balls the second time, sensei. It was scary," he said and she could tell that if he continued talking he would likely melt down right there. When she spoke to him her voice was dramatically gentler.

"All right. You should go. It might be a good idea to get yourself checked out soon."

Eiji quickly got changed and headed for home even though there was still another half hour of tennis practice. Normally, he would have waited for Oishi or Fuji if he was let out like this for some reason but today he didn't feel normal, so normal didn't apply. All he wanted to do was go home and sleep. He realized he felt extremely tired.

Heading towards his house he absently noticed that the bandages on his arms were starting to give way and some blood was soaking through. He noted that he should probably ask one of his sisters to bandage them again when he got home, even though they didn't hurt. Instead they felt sort of numb and tingly, like when you cut off your circulation. Wonderful.

Opening the door he removed his shoes and quickly flopped down on the stairs. He closed his eyes, also noting that his head hurt, but that didn't really phase him seeing that it always seemed to hurt now. However, he barely got a moments rest when his eldest sister, Akina age 17, entered the house.

And of course, the first thing she noticed was Eiji, sitting on the stairs and looking like a wreck.

"Eiji! What happened?" Concern filled her voice as she ran over to him, examining the bandages on his arms which were now thoroughly soaked in blood.

"I…I fell," Eiji answered startled, for he hadn't even heard his sister open the door.

Akina gave him a doubtful look before saying, "Eiji, what _really_ happened? Don't lie to me," she said while dragging him into the bathroom down the hall and beginning to unwind the bandages.

"I…I just fell. My foot…didn't move and I…fell," he answered truthfully.

Upon unraveling the bandages she noticed that what he said might have been true. The small spaces left by gravel and the pieces of sand stuck to his arms as well as the scrapes could only have been caused by falling, quite hard at that, on a tennis court. Glancing up at the clock Akina also noticed that Eiji's practice would be ending right now, meaning he was home early. So perhaps he was telling the truth.

Wiping his arms on a towel Akina then bandaged them again. "Does it hurt?" she asked him, though didn't get a response.

No, he was too busy staring at the crimson stains on the towel Akina had wiped his arms with. Blood. His blood. Suddenly it made him feel sick.

Then, without warning, his arms felt like they were on fire. It seemed that the feeling had come back to them. _Great, just great._

He felt nauseous, but he couldn't tear his eyes from his arms or from the towel. Shaking slightly he leaned against the wall only to suddenly vomit.

Legs buckling underneath him the last thing he heard was Akina's voice screaming his name before he lost consciousness.

* * *

Review, please? -does puppy eyes- I think this might become my main fic for a while. I'm going to try and update all of my stories/post some new ones on February 8th so that I can feel accomplished on my birthday (February 9th), so check back then. :) 

**(Yes, that whole Feb. 9th thing never happened. XP)**


	3. And you are?

Disclaimer: If I owned PoT then Rikkai would have been the main team, there would have been more chibi episodes, there would be lots of yaoi, and it would be Prince of Swimming.  
Words: 1,019 (Uh oh...they're getting shorter. Crap.) **1,037 after edit.**  
Title: Zutto Soba Ni (which I believe translates to "Always by your side".)  
Warning: Eventual Golden Pair. Possible character death.  
A/N: I'm starting yet again by saying that this is a cancer fic, but it's NOT a leukemia fic. In order to save poor Marui I have used Eiji instead as the MC. Also, thanks to my amazing new beta Laura (who doesn't exist on here. Shame on you Lauraness!) **(Actually she does. 'TheLovelyLizzy'. But she hasn't posted anything.)**

**For Joanna, you're the best friend anybody could ever have.**

** Edited May 15th, 2007. Only re-writes and editing, no content changes.  
**

* * *

Waking up, Eiji tried to open his eyes, but to his dismay his eyelids were heavy. Veeery heavy. It seemed to take all of his strength to even try to lift them.

After much difficulty they opened and the first thing Eiji noticed was that the room was very bright. And very white. And it smelled like cleaning solution and doctors' offices and – oh, he was in the hospital.

Closing his eyes, he tried to recall why he was there. There had been school, then tennis then – oh, he had fallen at practice. But was that enough to send him to the hospital? No, it couldn't have been, because he remembered coming home. But…then what? He couldn't remember anything past that.

Laying there with his eyes closed for a few minutes he heard voices not too far away. He tried to listen in, but could only catch random snippets of the conversation.

"Is…all right?"

"What…acting…normal…the rea…"

"…tests…hopefully…"

"…blood type…"

"…draw blood…MRI…"

"…what?!"

"…need him overnight?"

Some of the voices sounded familiar. Others did not. Some of the familiar ones he could put a name or a face or both with. Others he couldn't remember the slightest thing about.

Suddenly the voices got closer and before his mind could process everything he felt someone stroking his hair.

Giving it all of his strength he slowly lifted his eyelids again, while trying to process snippets from the conversation he had just heard and the one that was currently occurring.

Eiji blinked a couple of times before realizing that somebody had said his name and that eight pairs of eyes were currently focused on him.

Blinking again he tried to sit up only to find that he didn't have the energy to and that pain shot through both of his arms when he moved them. Thankfully the people in the room seemed to understand and they moved in closer.

Scanning the faces he tried to figure out which of them he knew. One of the first things he noticed was that their hair was all a shade of red. Well, besides this one guy whose hair was black, but you could see that his roots were red.

Still trying to figure out who all of the people were, he recognized one of them as his 17-year-old sister, Akina. One down, seven to go.

It didn't take him long to remember that the two "old people" in the room were his grandparents – his grandfather, age 77, and his grandmother who was 73.

Three down, five to go.

Studying each face intently, he recalled that the boy standing on his left was his 18-year-old brother, Daiki. And, standing right next to Daiki was his eldest brother, Satoki, age 21, who had dyed his hair black.

Five down, three to go.

Staring at a girl on his left he tried to remember who she was. She looked about a year older than him and her eyes were filled with worry. Searching through all of his thoughts, his mind told him that her name started with a C, but that was all he could come up with.

And there were two other people, a woman and a man both on his right, that looked familiar, but he couldn't remember anything about them.

Suddenly Eiji realized that the woman he couldn't identify was hugging him tightly and shaking slightly. Finding it strange that somebody he didn't know would do this, he pulled away.

The woman blinked.

"Eiji, honey, what's wrong?" the strange woman asked. He just smiled nervously and moved left.

"W-who are you?" he asked shakily. It wasn't every day that you end up in the hospital and then have a strange woman hug you.

"Eh, Eiji," the woman said moving her hand towards him only to have him move away as quickly as possible without crying out in pain, and lean towards Satoki and Daiki who were now sitting at the foot of his bed.

"Sa-nii, Dai-nii," he started nervously, now at the foot of his bed, his back pressed against one of his brothers, "W-who is she?"

"Eiji," Satoki started, because he was the elder of the two, "That's Okaa-san."

"No it's not!" he said while attempting to bury himself in between his two brothers. "It can't be her, because I don't know her!"

"Eiji, that's not funny!" scolded Akina, but she sounded more worried than harsh.

Eiji just started at his eldest sister. "H-hai, but who is she?"

* * *

Oishi rolled over in bed and sighed for what seemed like the thousandth time. Ever since the incident with Eiji and the tennis balls, he had begun to fret even more over his partner. It wasn't until today that Eiji had told him anything was going on. Sure, he had said a few things to him and Fuji, but it didn't really let them help. And if he couldn't help his partner then what was he supposed to do?

Sitting up, he grabbed his cell phone again and hit speed dial. Eiji's cell phone. It rang, he didn't pick up. Again.

He pressed speed dial and two. Eiji's house. Nobody picked up. Again.

Oishi had been called since practice had ended that day and nobody ever picked up. Right after practice he had gotten a busy signal, but after that it seemed that the phone hadn't been touched the rest of the night.

Sighing yet again he called Eiji's cell once more and listened to the recording of his friend's voice.

"_Moshimoshi, this is Kikumaru Eiji, nya! I can't answer your call right now, probably because I'm playing tennis with Oishi or Fujiko-chan, so please leave a message after the-" _here Eiji was cut off at the beep and Oishi left yet another message.

"Ah, Eiji, please pick up. Are you all right? You fell pretty hard today and I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I –I worry about you, Eiji, please be careful, okay? Ja," he said and hung up.

* * *

Back at the Kikumaru household the contents of Eiji's tennis bag laid strewn across the bathroom floor, but one thing stuck out most – a blinking cell phone in the middle of the room, surrounded by blood-soaked bandages and towels.

* * *

A/N: Done with this chapter! I admit that I don't really like the bit with Oishi at the end - it seems too choppy. But it felt right to put it there. Anyways, 1 of 3 fics tonight done. Please, if you read this, review! Reviews feed my soul and make me REALLY happy. Ask my friends. I'm in a way better mood when I get reviews than when I don't! -goes to type up her one-sided InuiKai drabble- 

**My (not really) InuiKai drabble was posted under the title 'Left Behind'. Check it out, neh? -puppy eyes-**


	4. Of Ryoma and C chan

Disclaimer: If I owned PoT then Rikkai would have been the main team, there would have been more chibi episodes, there would be lots of yaoi, and it would be Prince of Swimming.  
Words: 1,345 (Hey, it's going!)  
Title: Zutto Soba Ni (which I believe translates to "Always by your side".)  
Warning: Eventual Golden Pair. Possible character death.  
A/N: I'm starting yet again by saying that this is a cancer fic, but it's NOT a leukemia fic. In order to save poor Marui I have used Eiji instead as the MC. Also, this chapter is not edited, because I needed it out ASAP for reasons stated at the bottom. Also, the summary has been changed.

**As of May 18th this chapter was edited. No content changes, just technical stuff. Chapter five HAS been started! Thanks to all of my readers!**

Oh, and I've started this chapter using Ryoma, mainly because I can kind of relate (it's an age thing) and I do believe that he can keep a secret.

* * *

Echizen Ryoma laid his head on his desk and closed his eyes. It was the middle of second period – today English. Normally he would have slept, because growing up in America made English his best subject, but today he knew that if he fell asleep he probably wouldn't wake up.

He felt absolutely horrible. His head was pounding, his throat hurt, he couldn't breathe through his nose, and to top it off he felt like he was going to throw-up. Wonderful. Any normal person would have stayed home, but this is Echizen Ryoma we're talking about and there was no way he was missing school. Especially on a double practice day.

Of course getting through practice this morning was hell in itself. Just breathing hurt, so running was horrible. The only plus side was that Kikumaru-senpai wasn't there to make his headache worse.

_Come to think of it, Kikumaru-senpai hasn't been very loud at practice recently. I wonder why tha_- Ryoma was snapped out of his thoughts as the teacher called him up to the board to answer the next question.

Answering it quickly he went to sit down only to have the teacher say something that shocked him.

"That is incorrect Echizen-kun." Ryoma faced the teacher and blinked. "The answer was 'Human is good meat', not 'Human eat good meat.'"

"Ah," Ryoma took his seat and massaged his temples and his stomach. Had he really just missed a question in English Class?

He had.

Those thoughts alone were enough to make him feel dizzy. And the next thing he knew, that morning's breakfast was all over the classroom floor.

* * *

He was quickly escorted to the office by Kachiro (he really should thank the other freshman) where he then convinced the boy that he could make it from the office to the nurse seeing as it was the next room down.

Of course you had to go through the office to get to the nurse and he just happened to hear what one of the secretaries was saying.

"Ah, Kikumaru Eiji? Mhm. Yes, of course. May I ask why he's absent? Oh, I see, he's in the hospital? That's horrible. Do tell him to get well soon – he was always such a mood-lightener," the secretary said, not noticing that there was anybody else in the room, before hanging up and continuing whatever school secretaries do, while Ryoma blinked and slowly continued to the nurse's office.

_Kikumaru-senpai is in the hospital? Come to think of it he has been pretty quiet the past few weeks. But was that really serious enough to land him in the hospital?_ He though before finally being noticed by the secretary and shooed into the nurses office.

Thankfully he was able to convince the nurse that he was fine (by using his awesome powers of lying) and he went back to class – now third period.

Third period went fast – it was science, yet another easy subject. After third period was lunch.

It had become a tradition for Momo and the strange freshmen to sit with him at lunch, and today was no different.

Momo sat down next to him and started rambling about who-knows-what and asking him if he could have something-or-other from his lunch (Ryoma ended up giving it to him – he still didn't feel very well), while two of the random freshmen were still worrying about him and the other, annoying one, was saying something about his "two years of observing experience."

"…I wonder where Eiji-senpai was at practice this morning. He hasn't been looking well recently." Momo's observation snapped Ryoma out of a place far, far away. _Where was Kiku- oh, the hospital._ Ryoma thought and mentally flinched. Echizen Ryoma hated the hospital. Last time he ended up there it was with a cut over his eye, and before that it was with two bones broken in his wrist because some idiot high schooler was upset that a nine-year-old had beaten him.

"Ne, Echizen, you okay?" Momo said, waving a hand in front of his kouhai's face. Echizen, being the anti-social person he was, just nodded.

"You were spacing out again while we were trying to figure out where Kikumaru-senpai is today. Have you seen him, Ryoma-kun?" asked the normally quiet Kachiro.

Thankfully the bell rang at that exact moment and the topic wasn't brought up again until afternoon practice.

* * *

When Kikumaru Eiji woke up the next day his mind was a bit fuzzy, but he could still clearly remember what had happened the day before.

_The strange woman just stared at him for a moment or two before breaking down into tears. Once more her hand moved towards the normally energetic red-head and once more the boy pulled away, disturbed by the strange actions of the woman. It wasn't long before she was taken out of the room, by the strange man and his grandparents, kicking and screaming._

_Now being left with only his siblings and a somewhat familiar girl he looked to see what their reaction to this odd situation was._

_Standing at the end of his bed on the left was Akina whose arms were wrapped around the strange girls shoulders, as she whispered something into the shorter girl's ear._

_The strange girl (whom he had just decided to call C-chan), however, looked completely mortified about something and Akina's words didn't seem to re-assure her at all._

_At the foot of his bed on his right side was Daiki, who looked completely zoned out and almost in shock, while sitting next to him was Satoki who had one arm wrapped protectively around his shoulder._

_The room was deathly silent and Eiji could hear the screams of the woman as she was dragged down the hallway. He was almost beginning to feel sorry for the strange woman when C-chan let out a loud sob. Akina just tightened her grip on the younger girl and Satoki did the same to him. A few moments later Akina left the room with C-chan and he just stared at them._

"_Eiji," Satoki started, pulling the younger boy as close as possible. "Do you really not recognize Okaa-san?"_

_He nervously shook his head. "N-no, was that really Kaa-san? And," here Eiji's voice lowered to barely more than a whisper as he continued shakily. "I-if that was Kaa-san th-then was th-the man Tou-san?" Satoki nodded solemnly before Daiki finally spoke._

"_Do you know the rest of us?" he said, sounding somewhat hopeful._

_Eiji nodded thoughtfully. "M-most of you. The younger girl – C-chan – w-who's that?" he asked cautiously._

_Daiki frowned slightly. "Chieka. The youngest of us, next to you. She'll be sixteen in two weeks."_

"_Ah," he muttered and snuggled into Satoki's chest because he suddenly felt very tired. The last thing he saw was black locks of hair mixed with his bright red streaks as he fell asleep._

Now fully awake he was sitting up in bed when a nurse walked in.

"Kikumaru-kun, right?" she said and he knew she had to be referring to him because they were the only two in the room. He nodded slightly.

"I'm Nagayama Junko," she said smiling "and I'll be your main nurse while you're here. Right now it's just the simple things – temperature, blood pressure, drawing blood, the usual, so let's get started, shall we?" she said cheerily and Eiji couldn't help but smile even more than he currently was.

Everything went smoothly. He cooperated and she insisted that he was her "best patient" (which, he thought, was honestly a bit tacky considering he was fourteen). That is, until she had to draw blood.

It was honestly just a prick of the finger, nothing really serious or anything, but the moment she did it Eiji felt sick. He watch as the small tube filled with blood.

_His blood._

Blood never used to bother him before, especially not in this situation, but for some reason he felt sick even thinking about it. Thankfully that was over fast and Nagayama-sensei left, leaving him to settle back and hope that Sa-nii and Dai-nii would show up soon.

* * *

A/N: Okay, chapter four is done! I hope it didn't seem too rushed, I wanted to get it out sometime on March 20th or REALLY early on the 21st. Why? Because, it's my two year anniversary here. I actually only wrote for about half a month when I first came here. Then I dropped it and forgot about this place until June/July 2006. My first fict again was Akaya's birthday fic. Anyways, I've been back for almost exactly half a year now, and I want to thank all of my readers and reviewers! I love you all! However, there are two of you that I would like to thank endlessly. **merissala** for being the first person to review my first story back and for being just an awesome person in general and **Ahotep** for reading and reviewing all of my PoT (and Furuba) fics and for being the first review I got on a fic that took me forever (even if it did suck). 

Other people that I am eternally thankful for are **Old Fiat** (both of you! Luff you!), **A Dallop of Daisy**, **Claude le Viste**, and **Tora Macaw**.

Thanks to everybody who has me favored**: A Dallop A Daisy, Ahotep, Amakurikara, AmnesiacDemon, Chemical Dreamer, ChoFrog09, Claude Le Viste, DrAcOzChIbIgAl, gilmoregirl247, GSandM, I'llDieLaughingAtYou, Let it B De Way It is, miakimiharu, miracleflame-alchemist147, noeru K, Old Fiat, Silent Slayer 2000, SupernaturalFreak1, The Onigiri and Nezumi, thefanwithashortattentionspan,** and** youngdaughterofdarkness.**

Another huge thanks to everybody who has me on their alerts: **Abyssinian Rose, Ahotep, AmnesiacDemon, Chemical Dreamer, ChoFrog09, Claude Le Viste, DrAcOzChIbIgAl, GSandM, Launigsiaemiakimiharu, miracleflame-alchemist147, noeru K, Oscuriti, Roey Cleine, Sheik's Lonely, Tora Macaw, youngdaughterofdarkness, **and **Zeriku and Roey.**

**And a HUGEHUGEHUGE thanks to everybody who reviews. **

I probably sound really stupid saying this but you guys are truly the only reason I write fanfics (erm...post them. I write for my own pleasure of course. XP). I love and appreciate you all! -squishes-

**As of Edit: Wow...I'm...amazed. Was on twenty-one favorites lists and ** **seventeen alerts. I'm now at thirty favorites and twenty-four alerts. Yep, majoy ego-feeding has been occurring. Well I thank all of you! **


	5. So Now You Know

Disclaimer: If I owned PoT it would be PoS (Prince of Swimming).  
Title: Zutto Soba Ni (I believe that means 'always by your side'. If I'm wrong please correct me.)  
Words: 1488 (it's getting longer!)  
Warnings: Eventual Golden Pair. Possible character death. (Because I'm a sadist.)  
A/N: In case you somehow forgot: this is a cancer fic, but not a leukemia fic. Chapter has been edited because my beta has nothing to do with her summer. I'm sorry it takes so long for me to get these out! I really have no control over them: they write themselves. My hands just do the work. :P (Honestly, I hadn't planned for anything like this to happen in the story. Itt just kind of does...)

**Much thanks to 'TheLovelyLizzy' a.k.a. Lauraness, my beta!**

**Dedication: Joanna (because you're amazing), Sara P., Devin, Melissa, Amanda, and Peanut. **

* * *

Today was what Oishi would call "the worst day ever." 

Eiji wasn't at school at all that day, and his friend was currently the only thing on his mind.

He hadn't even noticed that their rookie had looked as if he were about to faint until Tezuka had sent the younger boy home.

No, without Eiji he just wasn't complete. And it seemed the rest of the team realized it too. After missing an easy shot for the fourth time in his practice match against Momo, he had been called over by Ryuuzaki-sensei.

"Oishi!" she called and he quickly jogged over. "It's obvious tha-"

"Gomen sensei. I promise it won't happen again," he interrupted knowing that he had to ignore the fact that Eiji wasn't there and try to play well. She sighed.

"Look, we both know that you're not going to be able to play with Eiji gone, so you might as well just leave. Go visit his house – see if he's home. All I know is that he wasn't in school today."

Oishi nodded, "Arigatou sensei." He headed towards the clubhouse to pack up his things and change, trying not to feel guilty that he was skipping practice. Zipping up his bag and buttoning his navy blue school jacket, he headed out of the club house in a brisk walk and towards Eiji's house.

* * *

Ryoma mentally sighed as he tried to keep from nodding off while walking to his house. He had made it through the rest of the school day okay, but the strenuous activities involved in tennis had been enough to get him sent home. 

As he was closing in on his house he heard sirens – probably an ambulance, since fires were rare – and as he turned the corner to his house he saw that it was indeed an ambulance -parked in front of his house. Slightly worried, he hurried over only to find that it was just his idiot father who had hurt himself somehow. He was just about to head inside the house when Nanako grabbed his shoulders and steered him the other way.

"Ryoma-kun, you have to come to the hospital."

"Yadda."

"It won't take that long, I promise. Uncle was just ringing the bell with his foot again when he slipped and got caught in the ropes. They think he might have broken it."

"That's nice."

"Please Ryoma-kun?"

"Yadda." And then, despite the fact that all Ryoma really wanted to do was head upstairs and sleep, he was forced into the ambulance alongside his father (who was screaming, the idiot.) and his cousin.

* * *

Oishi was speed-walking towards Eiji's house when an ambulance passed. Praying it had nothing to do with his friend, he picked up his pace so that he was near-sprint. 

Coming to a halt in front of a white door, Oishi stopped to catch his breath, gather his courage, and ring the doorbell, hoping Eiji was fine.

When nobody answered, he pressed the glowing rectangular button again, before rapping his knuckles against the door a few times.

Only as he had turned to leave did he hear the door open, and turned around to see the red eyes and face of the youngest Kikumaru girl, Chieka.

Trying not to act worried, he smiled nervously.

"Ah, Chieka-san, is Eiji home?"

Chieka's eyes became large and started to water, which Oishi could only take as a bad sign. He took a step or two back, suddenly realizing how close to the door he was, and was going to apologize for asking such a stupid question, when all of a sudden the door slammed shut. And if he knew one thing about the Kikumaru's it was that they were always polite, especially Chieka, so having a door slammed in his face was almost enough to send him into a state of panic.

He began walking down the front path, trying to calm and reassure himself, when, all of a sudden, he heard his name called out.

Turning around, Oishi was met with a pair of sad blue eyes that belonged to Daiki.

"She…never mind," Daiki trailed off. "Come in, will you?" Daiki put on a small smile and opened the door a little bit wider. Oishi nodded mutely before following the red-haired boy in.

Upon entering the house, Oishi toed off his shoes and followed Daiki into the living room where, much to his relief, Chieka was no where to be seen.

"Sit," the older boy commanded and Oishi knew that whatever he was about to be told would be extremely bad news.

"Eiji, he…we were…" The boy struggled to find the right words. "He..he's in the hospital," Daiki finished flatly. Oishi was shocked. Sure, he had known that his partner had been ill, but it was _that_ bad?

Daiki's voice interrupted his thoughts. "Eiji…he…after school yesterday, Akina says she came home and, well…he just kind of collapsed and passed out. She couldn't get him to come to, so she called 911.

"H-he was rushed to the ER where he was just diagnosed as 'unconscious' and given a room. Then we were all called.

"T-they wanted to know if we had any idea as to what might have caused Eiji to black out. Nobody knew.

"A-after t-that they walked away for a bit, conversing by themselves, b-but then they came back and…well, they hadn't run any t-tests or anything, but they s-said that it was most l-likely c-c-cancer, and p-possibly a-"

At this point Daiki couldn't go on and instead broke down when, all of a sudden, the quiet voice of Chieka came from the doorway.

"-brain tumor."

* * *

Ryoma tried to keep from dozing off in the waiting room, but it was hard. Waiting rooms were boring and tiring enough without the added fact that he was sick. He was just about to spread out on the bench and take a short nap when Nanako came back, saying that his father had just broken his ankle and that they should have finished setting the cast and be ready to leave in about half an hour. 

Ryoma got up and stretched slightly, before asking for some change and heading down the hall in hopes of finding a vending machine that sold grape-flavored Ponta.

Wandering down the white halls and following the sighs that said 'Cafeteria', he was almost to his beloved drink when he heard a somewhat-familiar voice coming from the room he had just passed.

He did a slight back-track to find that the voice was coming through a slightly open door. Deciding that he was not a cat and therefore would not get killed, he let his curiosity get the best of him and peeked through the door a very little bit.

Inside he was three people: a man who had black hair and seemed to be the oldest, a girl with bright red hair tied up in a pony tail, and his hyper red-haired senpai, Eiji.

His senpai was chatting with the other two quite naturally, so Ryoma guessed they were probably siblings or cousins, because they looked too young to be parents.

_He __**looks**__ fine. I wonder why he's in the hospital anyway,_ the younger boy thought and was just about to leave when he suddenly heard a call of "O'chibi!"

Attempting to make an escape, Ryoma turned to run down the hallway, but then felt somebody grasp his shoulder.

Turning around and trying not to show how nervous and embarrassed he was, he saw that it had been the black-haired man who had grabbed him. The man smiled warmly, before Eiji spoke again.

"O'chibi why are you here?" his senpai questioned, though he didn't seem upset, merely curious.

"Ah, my idiot father broke his leg."

"Oh, that's horrible!" The red-head seemed to genuinely mean it.

"Che, it was his own faul-" Ryoma was cut off by Nanako's voice calling for him. She spotted him through the door, which was now wide open, her face and voice worried and frantic.

"Ah, Ryoma-kun, there you are! We have to lea-" she stopped, suddenly realizing there were other people in the room. "Ah, um, hello," she said, looking flustered. The Kikumaru's smiled at her.

"Nya, are you O'chibi's sister?"

Nanako smiled and visibly relaxed. "Ah, no, I'm his cousin, Meino Nanako. Who's your friend, Ryoma-kun?"

However, before the short boy had a chance to respond, Eiji took over and said "Kikumaru Eiji, nya." It was then that Ryoma realized the cheer in the other boy's voice, while seeming somewhat genuine, was definitely semi-forced. Of course, he was in a hospital, why Ryoma still did not know, so it would make sense. Still, the thought of an un-cheerful Kikumaru-senpai scared him.

"-we'll be going then." Nanako's voice broke his thoughts as she dragged him out of the room and down the hall.

* * *

A/N: Yeah, I told you what he has. So you can stop making me feel guilty. XP Anyway, please review! Whatever it is, if it shows up on my review page I'll take it! And if you see any mistakes, please point them out! 

Well, you might notice there are a lot more people this chapter is dedicated to. If you were curious, this is why: they were on my Relay for Life team. We had Relay for Life from Friday (6 pm) to Saturday (6 am, but we left at 5 since it was raining) this past weekend. It was wonderful, and I fully encourage everybody to go to www(dot)relayforlife(dot)come and find a relay near you! You can even start a team:D


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